JP2000219419A - Sheet processing device and image forming device provided with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the supply of needles and elimination of paper jam from this side in the sheets carrying direction without requiring a large area and without providing a dedicated door by providing a processing device main body freely to come close or separate to/from an image forming device main body, and providing a needle supply port for stapler unit in the bonding surface. SOLUTION: A needle supply port 13 for a stapler unit 10 for stitching bundles of sheets loaded on a loading means 30 is provided in a bonding surface of a processing device 1 main body in relation to an image forming device 300 main body, and the processing device 1 main body is separated from the image forming device 300 main body so that the needle supply port 13 is exposed. With this structure, the necessity of providing a dedicated door for opening the needle supply port 13 is eliminated, and supply of needle and elimination of paper jam can be easily performed from this side in the sheets carrying direction without requiring a large area.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printing machine and a laser beam printer, and more particularly to a sheet processing apparatus for performing processing such as alignment and binding of sheets discharged after image formation. And an image forming apparatus including the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional image forming apparatus, a sheet is conveyed through each device for image formation, and after image formation, conveyed onto a processing tray of a sheet processing apparatus. In the sheet processing apparatus, a predetermined number of sheets are stacked and aligned on a processing tray, and a binding operation is performed by stapling or the like as necessary. In this case, the sheet processing apparatus is rotatably supported by a hinge or the like with respect to the image forming apparatus main body, and when replenishing a staple unit with a staple cartridge, or when a staple cartridge is caught by a staple cartridge (needle jam). When the binding operation of the bundle cannot be performed, the sheet processing apparatus is rotated to separate the joining surface of the image forming apparatus main body from the joining surface of the sheet processing apparatus, and is provided on the joining surface side of the sheet processing apparatus. The needle supply port of the staple unit is exposed.

In general, a sheet is bound in a face-up state with a left binding or an upper left corner, but a staple unit is provided depending on whether the sheet is discharged face down or face up from the image forming apparatus main body. Will be determined.

In a conventional sheet processing apparatus, a staple unit is provided on a surface on the front side with respect to the sheet conveying direction, and a staple unit is exposed by opening a door provided on a main body of the processing apparatus. There is also a configuration in which replenishment of a cartridge and removal of a needle jam can be performed.

[0005]

However, the above-described sheet processing apparatus is configured to be rotated with respect to the main body of the image forming apparatus so that the staple supply port of the staple unit is exposed. When the mouth is provided on the hinge side of the sheet processing apparatus, the replenishing operation of the staple cartridge is difficult unless the sheet processing apparatus is rotated significantly. For this reason, the former sheet processing apparatus requires an installation area large enough to rotate the processing apparatus main body largely.

In the latter sheet processing apparatus, a dedicated door must be provided in the main body of the processing apparatus in order to replenish the staple cartridge and remove the staple jam.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and can easily supply a staple and remove a staple jam from a near side in the sheet conveying direction without providing a dedicated door and without requiring a large area. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet processing apparatus as described above and an image forming apparatus including the same.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet processing apparatus, comprising: a stacking unit on which a sheet on which an image is formed by an image forming apparatus main body; A stapling unit for binding the sheet bundle on the stacking means, wherein a processing apparatus main body having the stacking means and the staple unit is provided so as to be able to freely contact with and separate from the image forming apparatus main body. A staple supply port of the staple unit is provided on a joint surface of the apparatus main body with the image forming apparatus main body.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the processing apparatus main body slides forward and backward with respect to the image forming apparatus main body.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, an alignment member for aligning the sheets stacked on the stacking means is provided, and the sheet bundle aligned by the alignment member is stapled by the staple unit. Things.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the binding position of the staple unit is located on the back side of the processing apparatus main body.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus for forming an image on a sheet and stacking the sheet conveyed from the image forming means to perform processing such as alignment, sorting and binding. A sheet processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is provided.

[Operation] Based on the above configuration, the staple supply port of the staple unit for binding and processing the sheet bundle stacked on the stacking means is provided at the joint surface of the processing apparatus main body with the image forming apparatus main body. The needle supply port can be exposed by separating the processing apparatus main body from the main body, thereby eliminating the need to provide a door for opening the needle supply port of the staple unit. Needle supply and needle jam removal can be easily performed from the near side in the sheet transport direction without requiring a large area without providing a dedicated door.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a mechanism for moving an alignment member provided on a post-processing tray of the sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a return roller and a bundle discharge belt in the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment. 5 (a) to 5 (d) are operation explanatory views showing a return roller and a bundle discharge belt extracted from the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a mechanism for moving a stack tray in the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment. Figure,
7 is a view from the direction of arrow B in FIG. 6, FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the standby position of the alignment member in the non-sort mode and the sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus, and FIG. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a first alignment position of the alignment member in the non-sort mode and the sort mode in the apparatus. FIG. 10 is a second alignment position of the alignment member in the non-sort mode and the sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus. FIG. 11 is a view for explaining the operation of the aligning member in the staple sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus of the above, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a state where the slide unit of the sheet processing apparatus of the same is disassembled. 13 (a)
FIG. 14B is a view for explaining a state in which the slide unit is attached to the image forming apparatus main body, FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a joint surface of the same sheet processing apparatus with the image forming apparatus main body, and FIG. FIG. 16 is an enlarged view showing a needle supply port provided on the joining surface side of FIG. 16, FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a position detection mechanism provided in the sheet processing apparatus, and FIG. 17 is a plan view showing the same position detection mechanism. FIG. 18 is a control block diagram for holding the bundle pushing member of the sheet processing apparatus at the home position.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an image forming apparatus 3 on which a recirculating document feeder (RDF) 305 is mounted.
This is a finisher as a sheet processing apparatus detachably mounted on the sheet processing apparatus 00.

In the image forming apparatus 300, as shown in FIG. 2, a document is automatically sent by a circulating document feeder 305, and an image is read by an image reading unit 306. Then, a signal is sent to the laser oscillator in accordance with the image information read by the controller (not shown), and a laser beam is emitted.

Next, the laser light is reflected by the rotating polygon mirror 309, and is further folded back by the reflection mirror 310 to form an image forming means having an evenly charged surface on the electrophotographic photosensitive drum 312. Irradiation forms an electrostatic latent image. After the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 312 is developed by the developing device 311, it is transferred as a toner image onto a sheet S composed of paper, an OHP sheet, or the like.

The sheet S is fed to a sheet cassette 351, 3 by a pickup roller 313 constituting a sheet feeding means.
52, is selectively fed out as appropriate, separated by separation means 307 and fed one by one.
6, 317, the skew is corrected by the pair of registration rollers 314, 315, and the photoconductor drum 312 and the transfer device opposed thereto are synchronized with the rotation of the photoconductor drum 312. Conveyed between. At this time, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 312 is transferred to the sheet S by the operation of the transfer device.

Thereafter, the sheet S is transferred to the fixing roller pair 301,
The toner image transferred to the sheet S by being heated and pressed by the fixing roller pair 301 and 302 is permanently fixed. The fixing roller pair 301 and 302 are in contact with the fixing upper separating claw 303 and the fixing lower separating claw 304, respectively.
2 separated.

The separated sheet S is supplied to a discharge roller pair 399.
Is transported to the outside of the image forming apparatus 300, and is guided to the finisher 1 connected to the image forming apparatus 300.

As shown in FIG. 1, the finisher 1 and the image forming apparatus 300 are connected to the image forming apparatus 30 by a lock arm 2 which is rotatably supported on the upper portion of the finisher 1.
The positioning member 3 is positioned and coupled to the holding member 3 provided at the first position.
Further, the image forming apparatus 3 is located below the main body of the finisher 1.
A slide unit 4 as a supporting member as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 which is connected to and supported by the main body 100 is attached, and the finisher 1 is moved in the sheet conveying direction (Y in FIG.
Direction).

That is, the slide unit 4 attached to the bottom of the finisher 1 has an outer rail 4a, an inner rail 4b slidable with respect to the outer rail 4a, and a tip of the inner rail 4b. The image forming apparatus includes a support leg 4c and a hook 4d provided on one side of the upper end of the support leg 4c. The hook 4d is engaged with a square hole 300a formed in the main body of the image forming apparatus 300. It was done. The relationship between the size of the hook 4d and the size of the square hole 300a is as follows.
A gap is created in the width direction when engaging with 00a. Therefore, when the finisher 1 is mounted on the image forming apparatus 300, the rails can be set to the large square holes 300a via the hooks 4d, so that the setting is easy. Also,
Since the rail supports the weight of the finisher 1 in the set state, there is no problem even if the hand is released. Further, after that, since only the positioning plate 11 for positioning the thrust is inserted, the insertion of the positioning plate 11 is a very easy operation requiring little force, and the workability can be improved. That is, in a state where the hook 4d is engaged with the square hole 300a, one end of the positioning plate 11 is connected to the hook 4d.
May be fitted into the gaps of the square holes 300a engaged with each other, and the other end may be simply fastened to the support legs 4c with screws or the like. Thus, the finisher 1 main body is slidably connected to and supported by the image forming apparatus 300 main body.

In this embodiment, the hook 4d is provided on one side of the upper end of the support leg 4c. However, the hook 4d is provided on both sides in the width direction of the upper end of the support leg 4c, and the positioning plate is provided. Positioning is performed by fitting between the hooks in a state of being engaged with the square holes 300a, or a hook is provided at substantially the center in the width direction of the support leg 4c, and the positioning plate is attached to the square holes 300a on both sides of the hooks. It may be fitted to and positioned.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a staple unit provided in the main body of the finisher 1. The staple unit 10 performs a binding process (stapling process) on a sheet bundle on a post-processing tray 30 as a stacking unit described later. Further, the staple unit 10 has a needle supply port 13 of the staple cartridge 12 provided on a joint surface 1a of the staple unit 10 with the main body of the image forming apparatus 300 at the back side. When the sheet bundle stacked on the post-processing tray 30 is stapled, the sheet S conveyed from the main body of the image forming apparatus 300 to the main body of the finisher 1 by the pair of discharge rollers 399 when the trailing edge of the sheet S exits from the pair of conveying rollers 9. ,
The sheet bundle on the post-processing tray 30 is stacked face-down on the post-processing tray 30 in order to drop onto the post-processing tray 30, switch back, and slide down on the post-processing tray 30 to the rear end stopper 31. Will be.

When the outer rail 4a is slid with respect to the inner rail portion 4b to separate the finisher 1 from the main body of the image forming apparatus 300, the staple unit 10 has a staple supply port of the staple cartridge 12 as shown in FIG. 13 is configured to be exposed. In the description of the present embodiment, the description of the configuration of the staple unit 10 is omitted, but it is almost the same as the configuration of an electric or motor-driven automatic stapling apparatus that is usually commercially available. To bind the sheet bundle.

Further, when a sheet conveyance failure in the image forming apparatus 300 or the finisher 1 occurs, and the sheet S staying in any one of the main bodies is taken out, the lock arm 2 is rotated in the X direction. The main body of the finisher 1 is made movable on the slide unit 4 in the direction of arrow Y to separate the main body of the finisher 1 from the main body of the image forming apparatus 300.

The sheet S discharged from the discharge roller pair 399 is sent further downstream by a sheet path 7 formed by the upper guide 5 and the lower guide 6 in the finisher 1. Reference numeral 8 denotes a sheet detection sensor that detects a passing sheet and a staying sheet. Reference numeral 9 denotes a transport roller pair, which includes a discharge roller 9a and a discharge roller 9b pressed against the discharge roller 9a.

The post-processing tray 30 is configured as an intermediate tray for temporarily accumulating the sheets S and performing alignment, sorting, stapling, and the like.

Reference numeral 60 denotes a pair of left and right bundle discharge belts (wrapping belts) serving as conveying means for conveying the sheets S on the post-processing tray 30 and discharging the bundle onto the stack tray 80. As shown in FIG. 4, bundle pushing members 60a, 60a that push the rear end of the sheet bundle when the sheet S bundle is conveyed to the stack tray 80 as shown in FIG. In the area sandwiched between the bundle discharge belts 60, 60, sorting processing (offset processing) is performed by the alignment members 41, 42 at different positions in the width direction on the post-processing tray 30.
The bundle discharge belts 60, 60 are spaced apart in the width direction so that the center of gravity C of the sheet S to be stapled and the center of gravity C of the sheet bundle to be stapled exist, and the center of gravity C and the staple of the sheet S to be offset processed. Bundle pushing members 60a, 60a are provided at different positions where the center of gravity of the sheet S bundle to be processed is separated in the width direction.

Reference numeral 20 denotes a post-processing tray unit, which is disposed between a conveyance unit that conveys the sheet S from the image forming apparatus 300 and a stack tray 80 that receives and stores the sheet S bundle post-processed by the post-processing tray 30. Will be arranged.

The post-processing tray unit 20 includes a post-processing tray 30, an aligning means 40, and return rollers 50a and 50a.
0b and a bundle discharge belt 60.

The post-processing tray 30, as shown in FIG.
The downstream side (left side in FIG. 1) in the sheet conveying direction is inclined upward, and the upstream side (right side in FIG. 1) in the sheet conveying direction is inclined downward, and a rear end stopper 31 is provided at a lower end. Have been.

Sheet S discharged by conveying roller pair 9
The sheet S slides on the post-processing tray 30 by its own weight and the action of return rollers 50a and 50b described later until the rear end of the sheet S abuts on the rear end stopper 31.

The bundle discharge belts 60, 60 receive a driving force from the motor 70 and move a bundle pushing member 60a, which will be described later, in the sheet conveying direction, so that the sheets S bundled on the post-processing tray 30 are moved. Is discharged onto the stack tray 80. In the present embodiment, two bundle pushing members 60a are attached to one bundle discharge belt 60 at equal intervals.
After the sheet bundle S is conveyed to the stack tray 80 by one of the bundle pushing members 60a, the bundle pushing member 60a is configured to stand by at a home position behind the rear end stopper 31.

Next, the function and operation of the bundle discharge belt 60 will be described with reference to FIGS.

The bundle discharge belt 60 is stretched between a driving pulley 61 provided with a fall prevention collar 61a for preventing the bundle pushing member 60a from falling and a driven pulley 62.
The driving pulley 61 includes a gear 63 and a one-way gear 6.
4. The one-way gear 64 is connected to the motor 70 via the timing belt 59, and transmits the driving force to the gear 63 only when the motor 70 rotates clockwise.

As shown in FIG. 4, the stacking discharge belts 60, 60 are separated from the bundle pushing members 60a, 60a by a predetermined distance in the turning direction rearward, and the loading auxiliary plate 6 as an assisting member.
0b and 60b are protruded. This loading auxiliary plate 60
b and 60b prevent the sheet S having a longer length in the transport direction than the post-processing tray 30 from dropping. When one of the bundle pushing members 60a and 60a is located at the home position, One loading auxiliary plate 6 corresponding to this
0b and 60b protrude downstream in the sheet conveyance direction (toward the driven pulley 62 in FIG. 4) and receive the sheet S conveyed from the conveyance roller pair 9 so as not to drop onto the stack tray 80. The loading auxiliary plate 60b is covered with a fluororesin as a low friction member.

As shown in FIG. 4, the protruding portion 60 to which the root portion 60c of the loading auxiliary plate 60b fits is attached to the bundle discharge belt 60.
d and the sheet S on the stack tray 80 are rolled up one by the elevating and lowering of the stack tray 80, etc., and the entry prevention protrusion 60e for preventing the sheet S from entering between the root 60c and the bundle discharge belt 60 due to the elasticity of the sheet S is integrally formed. It is protruding.

A position detecting mechanism for holding the bundle pushing member 60a at the home position is provided near the driving pulley 61 as shown in FIGS.

That is, on one side of the driving pulley 61 of one bundle discharging belt 60, a rotating lever 71 as a rotating member whose one end is exposed in the turning path of the bundle pushing member 60a.
Is provided. A sensor member 72 such as a photo sensor is provided on the other end side of the rotating lever 71, and the sensor member 72 transmits a detection signal by rotating the rotating lever 71. When the bundle discharge belts 60 and 60 turn via the driving pulley 61 by the rotational force transmitted from the motor 70, the bundle pushing belt 6
The sensor member 72 transmits a detection signal by the rotation lever 71 when the rotation lever 71 a comes into contact with the rotation lever 71. This detection signal is transmitted to a finisher controller circuit 73 as control means shown in FIG. The finisher controller circuit 73 controls the motor 70 to temporarily stop the bundle pushing member 60a at the home position where the contact between the bundle pushing member 60a and the rotating lever 71 is released, and is positioned forward of the bundle pushing member 60a. The sheet S conveyed from the conveying roller pair 9 to the post-processing tray 30 is received by the rear end stopper 31 that is in operation. When a predetermined number of sheets S are stacked on the post-processing tray 30, the bundle pushing members 60 a, 60 a located at the home position behind the rear end stopper 31 rotate with the bundle discharge belts 60, 60. The rear end of the sheet bundle is pushed, and the sheet bundle is discharged onto the stack tray 80. The rotation lever 7
1 and the sensor member 72 constitute a position detecting means.

Next, the configuration of the matching means 40 will be described with reference to FIG.

The aligning means 40 includes the aligning members 4 on the near side and the far side.
The alignment members 41 and 42 are independently movable to perform alignment processing and offset processing in a direction (width direction) orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction.
Are alignment surfaces 41a, 42a that abut on both side edges of the sheet S while standing on the post-processing tray 30, and rack gears 41b, 42b extending in the width direction of the post-processing tray 30.
And

The alignment members 41 and 42 are aligned with the alignment surfaces 41a and 42.
a are rack gears 41 b and 42 on the upper part of the post-processing tray 30.
b is disposed below the post-processing tray 30.

The rack gears 41b, 4
Separate pinion gears 43, 44 mesh with 2b, and these pinion gears 43, 44 are connected to motors 45, 46 via gears (not shown), respectively.

As a result, the pinion gears 43 and 44 rotate by the forward and reverse rotation of the motors 45 and 46, and the pinion gears 4 and 4 rotate.
The rack gears 41b and 42b respectively meshing with the gears 3 and 44 move, and the alignment members 41 and 42 move in the width direction of the sheet S.

The aligning members 41 and 42 are provided with sensors 47 and 48 for detecting the home position, and the aligning members 41 and 42 usually stand by at the home position. In the present embodiment, the matching members 41,
The home position of the aligning member 4 as shown in FIG.
1 is set to the front side, and the alignment member 42 is set to the back side.

Next, the functions of the return rollers 50a and 50b
The operation will be described with reference to FIGS.

The return rollers 50a and 50b have a fan shape smaller than a semicircle as shown in FIG.
1 is swingably fixed with respect to 1. The spring 52 adjusts the contact force of the return rollers 50a and 50b to the sheet S so that the sheet S is drawn toward the rear end stopper 31 with the same drawing force according to the amount of the sheet S stacked on the post-processing tray 30. Is what you do.

The return rollers 50a and 50b are attached to the return roller shaft 51 at predetermined intervals in the sheet width direction as shown in FIG. 3, and the outer peripheral surface of the arc shape has a friction member such as silicon rubber. 53 is mounted. The friction member 5 depends on the mounting position of the return roller shaft 51.
3 and a return roller 50b to which the friction member 53 is not mounted.

The return roller shaft 51 is supported by bearings 54 and 55 so as to be rotatable with respect to the front and rear side plates and to be movable in the thickness direction of the sheets S stacked on the post-processing tray 30. Press springs 56 and 57 are mounted. As a result, the return roller shaft 51 moves in the thickness direction of the sheet S according to the stacked amount of the sheet S. That is,
The pressing springs 56 and 57 are provided so that the return rollers 50a and 50b press the sheets S with substantially the same pressing force corresponding to the stacked amount of the sheets S stacked on the post-processing tray 30.

The return roller shaft 51 includes pulleys 58a and 58b.
And a timing belt 59 so as to transmit the rotational force of the motor 70. When driven by the motor 70, the return rollers 50a and 50b are integrally formed with the return roller shaft 51. It rotates counterclockwise in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the home positions of the return rollers 50a and 50b are set at positions where the sheet S discharged onto the post-processing tray 30 by the transport roller pair 9 does not come into contact.

When the sheet S is discharged from the pair of transport rollers 9 onto the post-processing tray 30, the return rollers 50a and 50b are driven by the motor 70 and centered on the return roller shaft 51 as shown in FIG. Then, the sheet S is rotated once in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 5 and the sheet S is pulled in until the sheet S comes into contact with the rear end stopper 31.

If the discharged sheet S leans on the lower guide 6, the ends of the return rollers 50a and 50b are caught on the rear end of the sheet S, and the return roller shaft is scraped off while the rear end of the sheet S is scraped off. One rotation in the counterclockwise direction of FIG.
Is securely landed, and is pulled in until it comes into contact with the rear end stopper 31. Thereafter, the return rollers 50a and 50b stop at the home position, and then prepare for discharging the sheet S.

The return rollers 50a and 50b are used for the final sheet S
5 is pulled until it comes into contact with the rear end stopper 31, the bundle discharge belt 60 is rotated by the drive of the motor 70, and follows the arrow A in FIG.
The sheet bundle is moved in the direction (sheet transport direction), and the aligned and stapled sheet bundle is discharged onto the stack tray 80 on the post-processing tray 30.

Next, the configuration of the stack tray 8 will be described with reference to FIGS.

The stack tray 80 has a built-in sub-tray 79. By pulling out the sub-tray 79 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG.
It is also possible to stack sheets S of such a large size.

As shown in FIG. 6, both sides of the stack tray 80 are supported by tray supporting plates 81 and 82, and the timing belts 83 and 8 are provided on the tray supporting plates 81 and 82, respectively.
4 are attached at both ends.

The timing belt 83 includes pulleys 85 and 86
In addition, the timing belt 84 is wound around pulleys 87 and 88, and the pulleys 86 and 88 are fixed to a drive shaft 90 to which a drive gear 89 is fixed.
It is connected to.

Each of the tray support plates 81 and 82 has a roller 93,
94 is rotatably attached to roller guides 95 and 96, and when driven by a drive motor 92,
It moves up and down (Z direction in FIG. 6) along the roller guides 95 and 96.

Reference numeral 97 denotes a sheet surface height detection sensor.
The height of the stacked sheet bundle is detected, and the post-processing tray 30 is detected.
Is adjusted to a predetermined amount with respect to the stack tray 80 loading surface.

Reference numeral 98 denotes a sheet rear end pressing member, which comes out of the guide surface 99 in conjunction with the elevating operation of the stack tray 80, presses the rear end of the sheet S bundle stacked on the stack tray 80, and This prevents deviation in the sheet discharging direction after the bundle is discharged.

Next, the flow of the sheet S such as the alignment processing and the sorting processing in the finisher 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIGS.

First, the operation when the user designates the non-sort mode with the operation unit (not shown) of the image forming apparatus 300 will be described.

An image is formed on the sheet S in the image forming apparatus 300 by setting an original on the circulating original transport device 305 and turning on a start key (not shown). Then, the rotation of the conveyance roller pair 9 of the finisher 1 causes the discharge roller pair 39 of the image forming apparatus 300 to rotate.
The sheet S output from 9 is guided to the finisher 1.

When there is no sheet S on the post-processing tray 30, that is, when the first sheet S is discharged onto the post-processing tray 30, the front and rear sides waiting at the home position are used. The alignment members 41 and 42 are moved in advance to positions slightly relieved with respect to the width of the sheet S as shown in FIG.

The sheet S conveyed by the conveying roller pair 9 moves to the rear end stopper 31 by its own weight, and in addition, the return rollers 50a, 50b stopped at the home position.
1 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 1 in response to the driving force from the motor 70, and assists the movement of the sheet S in the direction of the rear end stopper 31.

When the rear end of the sheet S is securely brought into contact with the rear end stopper 31 and stopped, the rear alignment member 42 stops at the position PS21 as shown in FIG. 9 and plays a role as an alignment reference plane. Then, the alignment member 41 on the near side moves to the position PS
12, the sheet S is aligned with the first alignment position.

The sheet bundle of the first set after the alignment is completed is discharged and transferred to the stack tray 80. in this case,
Since the center of gravity C of the sheet S bundle exists in the area of the bundle pushing members 60a, 60a, the sheet S bundle is smoothly discharged to the stack tray 80, and the sheet S bundle does not skew.

Next, the operation when the user specifies the sort mode will be described.

An image is formed on the sheet S in the image forming apparatus 300 by setting a document on the circulating document feeder 305, specifying a sort mode on an operation unit (not shown), and turning on a start key (not shown). . Then, as the transport roller pair 9 of the finisher 1 rotates, the sheet S output from the discharge roller pair 399 is guided to the finisher 1, and is stacked on the post-processing tray 30 by the transport roller pair 9.

When there is no sheet S on the post-processing tray 30, that is, when the first sheet S is discharged onto the post-processing tray 30, the front and rear sides waiting at the home position are used. The aligning members 41 and 42 are moved in advance to a position slightly relieved with respect to the width of the sheet S.

The sheet S conveyed by the conveying roller pair 9 moves to the rear end stopper 31 by its own weight, and the return roller 50 stopped at the home position is driven by the motor 7.
In response to the driving of the sheet S, the sheet S rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 1 and assists the movement of the sheet S toward the rear end stopper 31.

When the rear end of the sheet S is securely brought into contact with the rear end stopper 31 and stopped, as shown in FIG. 9, the rear alignment member 42 stops, the front alignment member 41 moves, and the sheet S moves. S is moved to the first alignment position to perform alignment.

Thereafter, the aligning member 41 on the front side moves to the position PS11 and waits for the next sheet S to be discharged, and when the discharge of the sheet S is completed, moves to the position PS12 again to remove the sheet S. Align at one alignment position. At this time, the rear alignment member 42 stops at the position PS21,
Serves as a matching reference plane. The above operation is continued until the last sheet S of the sheet bundle.

The sheet bundle of the first set after the alignment is completed is discharged as described above and transferred to the stack tray 80. In this case, the center of gravity of the sheet S bundle is
Since the sheet S is present in the areas a and 60a, the sheet S bundle is smoothly discharged to the stack tray 80, and the sheet S bundle does not skew.

Subsequently, the second bundle of sheets S is discharged onto the post-processing tray 30. At this time, the alignment members 41 and 42 are moved to the positions PS11 and PS2 shown in FIG.
1, but the alignment position PS22 is the second position shown in FIG.
Move to alignment position. The second alignment position is located on the near side by a predetermined amount Lc with respect to the first alignment position.

Thereafter, the stacking of the sheets S is performed on the stack tray 80 while changing the alignment position alternately for each sheet S, and the sorting and stacking of the offset amount Lc becomes possible.

The sheet bundle of the second copy after the alignment is completed is discharged as described above and transferred to the stack tray 80. In this case, the center of gravity C of the sheet S bundle is
Since the sheet S is present in the areas a and 60b, the sheet S bundle is smoothly discharged to the stack tray 80, and the sheet S bundle does not skew.

Next, the operation when the user specifies the staple sort mode will be described.

An image is formed on the sheet S in the image forming apparatus 300 by setting an original on the circulating original transport device 305 and turning on a start key (not shown).
Then, the sheet S output from the discharge roller pair 399 is output by the rotation of the conveyance roller pair 9 of the finisher 1.
Is guided to the finisher 1, and is stacked on the post-processing tray 30 by the conveying roller pair 9.

The sheet S conveyed by the conveying roller pair 9 moves to the rear end stopper 31 by its own weight, and in addition, the return rollers 50a, 50b stopped at the home position.
1 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 1 in response to the drive of the motor 70, and assists the movement of the sheet S in the direction of the rear end stopper 31.

When the rear end of the sheet S is securely brought into contact with the rear end stopper 31 and stopped, the alignment member 41 stops at the home position, and the alignment member 42 moves the sheet S discharged onto the rear end stopper 31 to the staple position. (Figure 1)
1).

When all the sheets S of the first set of the sheet S bundle are discharged onto the post-processing tray 30 and aligned,
The staple unit 10 staples the sheet S bundle. The bundle of sheets S on the post-processing tray 30 is discharged onto the stack tray 80 by the bundle discharge belt 60.
Also in this case, the center of gravity of the sheet S bundle is the bundle pushing member 60a, 6b.
0a, and therefore the sheet S
The bundle is smoothly discharged to the stack tray 80, and the sheet S
The bundle does not skew.

Also, when the stapling process is performed on the sheet bundle by the staple unit 10, the staple cartridge 12 runs out of staples, and the staple cartridge 12 needs to be replenished. In this case, the lock arm 2 is rotated to release the engagement with the hold member 3, and the outer rail portion 4 a to which the finisher 1 main body is attached is slid with respect to the inner rail portion 4 b so that the image forming apparatus 300 is Separate the joint with the finisher 1 body. As a result, the joining surface of the finisher 1 main body is exposed and the needle supply port 13 appears, so that
Needles can be replenished and needles stuck on the needle cartridge 13 can be easily removed.

[0087]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A staple supply port of a staple unit for binding and processing a sheet bundle stacked on the stacking means is provided at a joining surface of the processing apparatus main body with respect to the image forming apparatus main body, and the processing apparatus main body is separated from the image forming apparatus main body. By exposing the needle supply port, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated door for opening the needle supply port of the staple unit.

Further, without providing a dedicated door, staple supply and staple jam removal can be easily performed from the near side in the sheet conveying direction without requiring a large area.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of a sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a mechanism for moving an alignment member provided on a post-processing tray of the sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram extracting and showing a return roller and a bundle push in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIGS. 5A to 5D are explanatory diagrams illustrating operations of the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment, in which a return roller and a bundle pushing belt are extracted and illustrated.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a mechanism for moving a stack tray in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a view as seen from the direction of arrow B in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a standby position of an alignment member in a non-sort mode and a sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a first alignment position of the alignment member in the non-sort mode and the sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a second alignment position of the alignment member in the non-sort mode and the sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the alignment member in the staple sort mode in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a state where a slide unit of the sheet processing apparatus is disassembled.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating a state in which the slide unit is attached to the image forming apparatus main body.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a joint surface of the sheet processing apparatus with an image forming apparatus main body.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged view showing a needle supply port provided on the joining surface side of the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a position detection mechanism provided in the sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a plan view showing the position detection mechanism.

FIG. 18 is a control block diagram for holding the bundle pushing member of the sheet processing apparatus at a home position.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sheet processing apparatus (finisher) 10 Staple unit 13 Needle supply port 30 Loading means (post-processing tray) 300 Image forming apparatus

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Junichi Mogi 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo F-term in Canon Inc. (reference) 2H072 AA17 AA22 FB02 FB06 GA08 3F054 AA01 AB01 AC02 AC04 AC05 BA02 BH08 BH14 DA01 3F108 GA02 GA04 GA05 GB01 HA02 HA32

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A sheet processing apparatus comprising: stacking means for stacking sheets on which images are formed by an image forming apparatus main body; and a staple unit for binding and processing a sheet bundle on the stacking means. A processing apparatus main body having a staple unit is provided so as to be able to freely contact and separate from the image forming apparatus main body, and a staple supply port of the staple unit is provided on a joint surface of the processing apparatus main body with the image forming apparatus main body. Sheet processing device. 2. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing apparatus main body slides freely with respect to the image forming apparatus main body. 3. The staple unit according to claim 1, further comprising an alignment member for aligning the sheets stacked on the stacking means, and binding the sheet bundle aligned by the alignment member with the staple unit. Item 3. The sheet processing apparatus according to Item 2. 4. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the staple unit is disposed at a rear side of the processing apparatus main body. 5. An image forming means for forming an image on a sheet,
An image, comprising: the sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet conveyed from the image forming unit is stacked to perform processing such as alignment, sorting, and binding. Forming equipment.